Trouble With Tua

On Thursday, star Quarterback for the Miami Dolphins Tua Tagovailoa went down after being tackled by Josh Tupou. Laying there barely conscious he had suffered a major concussion and would later be hospitalized. Just 5 days earlier he was playing against the Buffalo Bills when he was slammed down to the Turf. He popped back up but when he tried to jog back to his sideline his legs would collapse and he would fall down.

This entire situation appears controversial from an outside eye because the question we are all asking is, “How was he cleared to play?” Well, the medical official that made this decision (that wants to remain unnamed) has since been fired from the Dolphin’s staff. The decision for him to play was able to be made because the Dolphins attributed his stumbling in the game against the Bills to an ongoing ankle injury. He was later allowed to return and finish the game against the Bills. This decision is also now under review to see if the right steps were followed to clear him. “We’ll have all of those interviews,” NFL chief medical officer Dr. Allen Sills told the NFL Network. “We’ll review all of the videos, we’ll review all of the data. And the purpose of that review is to make sure that the concussion protocol was followed.”

For this to happen to a player is terrible, especially for such an upcoming player on a great team like Tua. Everyone surrounding him was deeply hurt by this event, including his brother Taulia Tagovailoa who plays quarterback at Maryland University. Taulia did not play in his football game on Saturday following his brother’s injury.“Friday, I didn’t want to play the game. Friday night, I was excited to play the game.” said Taulia. This statement came after he was able to FaceTime his brother on the Friday night after his scary injury.

This event will probably be remembered as a case that was mishandled and might serve as a turning point in the way the NFL handles concussions and their protocols.

More news about his injury will be released in the following days but at this time he is doing well and will sit out this week for safety. Everyone hopes that he can return at the same level that he was playing at and finish the season on a good note. As Tua says,” You just always have to be ready.”